1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process and apparatus for separating components from blood plasma, and more particularly to a process and apparatus suitable for speedily separating thrombin, fibrinogen and Factor X III from blood plasma.
2. Description of Related Art
Human blood plasma is the yellow, protein-rich fluid that suspends the cellular components of whole blood, that is, the red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Plasma, which is 90 percent water, constitutes about 55 percent of the total blood volume. Plasma contains albumin (the chief protein constituent), fibrinogen (responsible, in part, for the clotting of blood), globulins (including antibodies) and other clotting proteins. Plasma serves a variety of functions, from maintaining a satisfactory blood pressure and providing volume to supplying critical proteins for blood clotting and immunity. Plasma is obtained by separating the liquid portion of blood from the cells suspended therein.
Much the same as crude oil is broken down into its component parts, blood plasma, once separated from the other components of whole blood, can be further separated into a number of valuable plasma components. Some of these plasma components, such as fibrinogen and thrombin, are very valuable. The process by which plasma is separated into some of its different component parts is known as fractionation.
Conventionally, the method for separating the desired proteins is generally achieved by protein precipitation. The common methods for precipitating proteins are as follow: (a) Ammonium sulfate precipitation method: Certain proportions of non-polar regions are distributed over the surfaces of every protein molecule. The non-polar regions accumulate a number of water molecules to be dissolved into an aqueous solution. If a large amount of ammonium sulfate is added into the aqueous solution, the water molecules, which accumulate over the surfaces of protein, will be removed because of the capability of high hydration of ammonium sulfate. As such, the non-polar regions on the surfaces of protein are exposed, and then, protein complexes are precipitated by an affinity for the hydrophobic surfaces of the protein. (b) Isoelectric point precipitation method: If the pH of a protein solution is adjusted to its isoelectric point, the net charge of the protein will be zero. Thus, the repulsion between molecules decreases so that protein complexes are precipitated because of self-interaction of these molecules. (c) Organic solvent precipitation method: The concentration of water molecules is diluted by addition of a large amount of an organic solvent into a protein solution. Thus, the solubility of protein decreases rapidly and a precipitation occurs
Centrifugation is the most convenient method for liquid-solid separation. Hence, after the proteins are precipitated by the above-mentioned methods, the proteins in a solid state or a quasi-solid state are separated by centrifugation. The centrifugation is processed at a low temperature to prevent denaturation of the proteins at a high temperature while centrifugation is carried out.
The separating plasma components by a centrifuge and then transporting the product to the operation room takes a significant mount of time and as a result of no centrifuge equipment is provided in the operation room while in clinical use. Furthermore, the risks of plasma contamination will be increased during the transportation. Therefore, there is a need to provide a process and an apparatus that are capable of separating the different components of blood plasma for clinical use.